Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists (04 Apr 2025) Raptors
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Apr 4, 2025, 3:43:43 PM4/4/25
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Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists
Golden, Colorado, USA
Visitors:
Thank you to our volunteer crew today! Thank you to Leslie and Ruth for your company this morning and thank you to our afternoon crew with their flexibly with the weather cancelation. No visitors came by the Hawkwatch today, no one was seen recreating either. Can't make it out to the ridge and still want to follow along? Check out our Trektellen page and follow along with live updates at https://www.trektellen.org/count/view/4515/20250301 .
Weather:
The Hawkwatch has been canceled for the rest of the day due to low visibility and hail on the ridge. Conditions are expected to continue into tomorrow. The volunteer calendar has also been updated to show today’s cancellation. Weather started with 100% cloud cover in the first hour of the count with decent visibility. As it began snowing visibility was lost to the N and the S leaving slight visibility of Green mountain and Mount Morrison. The final count hour brought total loss of sight lines along with hail. Temperatures consistent around 2C.
Raptor Observations:
No migrant raptors were observed during this count period. With the storm both N and S of the Hawkwatch platform, migrant movement was severely restricted. Local raptors included the probable nesting pair of Peregrines, one individual was seen hunting along the W slope of Morrison heading S, and the other individual was seen directly overhead moving S shortly after. A low S bound juvenile Turkey Vulture and local adult Red-tailed Hawk were also of note.
Non-raptor Observations:
Northern Flicker 2, Black-billed Magpie 2, Common Raven 2, Black-capped Chickadee 3, Western Bluebird 18, House Finch 5, Pine Siskin 3, Dark-eyed Junco 2, Spotted Towhee 2, Western Meadowlark 1
Predictions:
Tomorrow there is potentially for more flurries and snow. The morning should be overcast with possible sun before transitioning to 100% cloud cover in the afternoon. Expect muddy trail condition in the morning and temperatures around 0C. Due to the weather keeping migrants at bay for the past few days, there is potential for a push of movement the next two days as conditions improve.
Report submitted by Official Counter of the day shown above (dinor...@gmail.com)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at: www.dinosaurridgehawkwatch.org
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Site Description
Dinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawk watch in Colorado and is the
best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Hawk watchers may
see 17 species of migrating raptors; and it is an excellent site to see rare
dark morph buteos including Broad-winged hawk, Swainson’s hawk, Ferruginous
hawk, Rough-legged hawk and Red-tailed Hawk. Other raptors we see include Golden
and Bald Eagles, Northern harrier, Osprey, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons,
Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels, Merlin, and Turkey
Vultures. American Goshawk is uncommon but also counted each season. Non-raptor
species include Rock Wren, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane,
White-throated Swift, American White Pelican, and Dusky Grouse. Birders of any
skill level are always welcome. The hawk watch at Dinosaur Ridge is staffed by
Hawk Counter(s) and volunteers from March through early May.
Directions to site:
From exit 259 on I-70 towards Morrison, drive south under freeway and take left
into first parking lot, the Stegosaurus lot. Follow hawk watch signs from the
southwest end of the parking lot to the hawk watch site. The hike starts heading
east on an old two-track and quickly turns south onto a trail on the west side
of the ridge. When the trail nears the top of the ridge, turn left, and walk to
the flat area at the crest of the ridge. (Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain:
259 feet)
Golden, Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 04, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 14 | 55 |
| Osprey | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 4 | 32 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 2 | 51 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 14 | 279 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 9 | 111 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total: | 0 | 48 | 621 |
| Observation start time: | 09:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 12:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 3 hours |
| Official Counter | Audrey Anderson |
| Observers: | Leslie Dixon, Ruth Artes |
Visitors:
Thank you to our volunteer crew today! Thank you to Leslie and Ruth for your company this morning and thank you to our afternoon crew with their flexibly with the weather cancelation. No visitors came by the Hawkwatch today, no one was seen recreating either. Can't make it out to the ridge and still want to follow along? Check out our Trektellen page and follow along with live updates at https://www.trektellen.org/count/view/4515/20250301 .
Weather:
The Hawkwatch has been canceled for the rest of the day due to low visibility and hail on the ridge. Conditions are expected to continue into tomorrow. The volunteer calendar has also been updated to show today’s cancellation. Weather started with 100% cloud cover in the first hour of the count with decent visibility. As it began snowing visibility was lost to the N and the S leaving slight visibility of Green mountain and Mount Morrison. The final count hour brought total loss of sight lines along with hail. Temperatures consistent around 2C.
Raptor Observations:
No migrant raptors were observed during this count period. With the storm both N and S of the Hawkwatch platform, migrant movement was severely restricted. Local raptors included the probable nesting pair of Peregrines, one individual was seen hunting along the W slope of Morrison heading S, and the other individual was seen directly overhead moving S shortly after. A low S bound juvenile Turkey Vulture and local adult Red-tailed Hawk were also of note.
Non-raptor Observations:
Northern Flicker 2, Black-billed Magpie 2, Common Raven 2, Black-capped Chickadee 3, Western Bluebird 18, House Finch 5, Pine Siskin 3, Dark-eyed Junco 2, Spotted Towhee 2, Western Meadowlark 1
Predictions:
Tomorrow there is potentially for more flurries and snow. The morning should be overcast with possible sun before transitioning to 100% cloud cover in the afternoon. Expect muddy trail condition in the morning and temperatures around 0C. Due to the weather keeping migrants at bay for the past few days, there is potential for a push of movement the next two days as conditions improve.
Report submitted by Official Counter of the day shown above (dinor...@gmail.com)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at: www.dinosaurridgehawkwatch.org
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Site Description
Dinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawk watch in Colorado and is the
best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Hawk watchers may
see 17 species of migrating raptors; and it is an excellent site to see rare
dark morph buteos including Broad-winged hawk, Swainson’s hawk, Ferruginous
hawk, Rough-legged hawk and Red-tailed Hawk. Other raptors we see include Golden
and Bald Eagles, Northern harrier, Osprey, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons,
Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels, Merlin, and Turkey
Vultures. American Goshawk is uncommon but also counted each season. Non-raptor
species include Rock Wren, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane,
White-throated Swift, American White Pelican, and Dusky Grouse. Birders of any
skill level are always welcome. The hawk watch at Dinosaur Ridge is staffed by
Hawk Counter(s) and volunteers from March through early May.
Directions to site:
From exit 259 on I-70 towards Morrison, drive south under freeway and take left
into first parking lot, the Stegosaurus lot. Follow hawk watch signs from the
southwest end of the parking lot to the hawk watch site. The hike starts heading
east on an old two-track and quickly turns south onto a trail on the west side
of the ridge. When the trail nears the top of the ridge, turn left, and walk to
the flat area at the crest of the ridge. (Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain:
259 feet)
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